


Breaking Year

by katriona_subasa



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Gen, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-09-16
Updated: 2014-09-16
Packaged: 2018-02-17 14:46:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2313317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/katriona_subasa/pseuds/katriona_subasa
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There are those years where the world just isn't kind to you. This year... is one of those years to a certain group of friends. Modern!AU, with some basis in social media such as Skype.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Breaking Year

Armin sighed as he tripped his way into his apartment. He'd been in the library studying for his upcoming medical exam, but it closed, so he was forced to head home. He wanted to study more. Needed to study more, really. If he didn't keep his grades up, he'd never become the doctor he wanted to be. A doctor that could cure people like his slowly dying grandfather…

Absently, he set up his laptop on his desk and shifted through his bag for his textbooks. It was only midnight. He could study for three more hours here, and then sleep for about four hours until his morning classes started. Yeah, that would do it.

All thoughts froze as a ringing sound came through his computer. He blinked owlishly at it, registering two things. One, the call was coming from the Skype chat he shared with all his friends. Two, the icon was for Mikasa. But Mikasa _never_ stayed up this late.

Hesitantly, he clicked the 'accept' button and waited for everything to connect. "Hello?" he whispered after he heard everything click. He heard nothing but screams and sobbing and sirens. What was… "Hello?"

 _"Armin!"_ That was Mikasa, but before he could say anything in reply, she was coughing violently. His mind immediately produced everything she could possibly be suffering from, each worse than the last. _"Oh, thank god, someone picked up…!"_ Except there was more coughing and her voice was thick and what the hell was going on with one of his dearest friends?

 _"Mikasa, drink this, please, and listen to the paramedics!"_ Eren's voice filtered in, before taking over completely. _"Armin, that you?"_

"Yeah." Eren's voice sounded raspy and raw. More conditions filtered in his head, and Armin had to fight the urge to panic. Panic wouldn't help anyone right now. "Eren, what's going on?"

 _"There's a fire at our apartment. Mikasa and I just got out. She managed to get her computer out first. We don't know where our cell phones are. We just grabbed our backpacks and ran."_ Fire? Wasn't stuff like that supposed to happen to people you didn't know? _"I don't know where… hey, can we crash at your place?"_

"I'll have everything set up when you get here, but don't you dare not listen to the paramedics."

 _"Thanks, Armin. We'll see you in a bit."_ The call clicked off and Armin just stared at his screen. Fire. His friends had to escape the flames and smoke. Were they okay? No, wait, of course they were. But… He shook his head, took a breath to calm his panic, and typed a quick note to the others in the chat.

**Arminalert: Hey, guys? Mikasa and Eren's place burned. They're at my place, or will be soon. Send help when you can?**

He read over the message a bit before hitting send and going to make up two extra beds, with plenty of pillows and blankets.

It was two hours later when his friends arrived, sweating, panting, and crying. It took him ten minutes to learn why. Their mother, Carla, hadn't been able to escape the flames like them. She'd burned to death. So, after he got them settled in, he typed in one extra note to the chat.

**Arminalert: Guys, their mother died in it. No jokes, just help. They lost everything but what's in their backpacks in wallets.**

After hitting send, he dragged his own blankets to Mikasa and Eren and settled into sleep with them, letting them cling as they tried to find some comfort in what just happened. It was the least he could do for his childhood friends, right?


End file.
